Management skills requirements for electronic commerce: a "business-centric" approach

Abstract

Adoption of the technologies and business models associated with Electronic Commerce pose significant management challenges to firms because of the relatively large increments of technological and organizational change involved. Possession of business skills as well as technology skills by the firm is necessary for successful adoption of Electronic Commerce practices. However, the specifics of the necessary skill set, and in particular the management skill set, for Electronic Commerce remain unclear. This paper reports some results of interviews, analysis of job descriptions, and literature surveys to explore the question of what management skills are needed to derive business value from Electronic Commerce. We identify an emerging demand for a "business-centric" approach to development of management skills for Electronic Commerce in firms, distinguished from prevailing "technology-centric" approaches.